I am an optimistic person, my friend.

You know how some people are like, ah, you can't be happy all the time?

I'm not happy all the time, but I can make the choice.

Yeah.

And optimism is like a muscle that gets stronger with use.

You know, the more you do it, the more you get in the habit of doing it.

Welcome to Kelly Corrigan Wonders. I'm Kelly Corrigan Wonders.

I'm Kelly Corrigan, and today I'm wondering about grit and the power of passion and perseverance against incredible odds.

My conversation partner is the insanely charming Robin Roberts.

You know her as the anchor of Good Morning America.

Today, we'll talk about embracing optimism in the face of illness, natural disasters,

and long odds. We'll be right back with Kelly Corrigan Wonders. I'm Kelly Corrigan. If ever there was a time to study

perseverance such that we might muster it more readily, this is it. Long before COVID made

quarantine commonplace, Robin Roberts stepped away from her life and isolated for three months after a bone marrow

transplant to save her life. That's a lot of time to reflect on family, career, and our innate need

for a community. It's also a far cry from saying good morning to America, five days a week,

and a singular time to reflect on a future

that may or may not come. Here's my conversation, originally recorded from my PBS show,

Tell Me More, with athlete, broadcaster, and survivor, Robin Roberts.

So you had a killer career at ESPN, been a GMA, survived cancer.

You survived a bone marrow transplant, 174 days away from the world.

But I noticed something in your bio that stood out above all the rest, which was that at 12 years old, you were the Mississippi

...